June 11, 2012

BEST NEWS EVER

There might be a lot of caps lock and exclamation points in this post, just a heads up.

Have you noticed for the last little while how I haven't mentioned anything about Chin heading to Med school in the fall?

Well, that's because for the past six months, we haven't been sure if he was actually going to be going this year.

Actually, make it the past year that we've had no clue what our future has held.

After we spent the (tons of) money to apply to medical school, and after Chin interviewed at four different schools, for six months, all we did was wait.

AND WAIT.

AND WAIT.

The months literally dragged on and I tried to keep being positive, even though most of the time I wanted to punch my fist through a wall like Andy Bernard.

When the deadlines came for the schools to let us know whether we got in or not, the best news we received was "Waitlisted." We got waitlisted to 3 dang schools, and rejected from the other school he interviewed at. (the other schools he didn't interview at we got rejected from).

Now think about how we were feeling. I had blabbed and blabbed to everyone practically about my husband the future doctor, and our plans to go to med school. I even talked about it on here. And then for us to just not have anything to go off of, and to not know what was in store for us. It was honestly terrifying.

We still tried to remain positive, but a lot of the times I found myself crying in the bathroom where I work or listening to Chin toss and turn at night, knowing he was stressed about the next four years.

It's one thing to fly by the seat of your pants, but it's another thing to wait and watch our friends' plans materialize, and often times it felt like we were stuck in time, literally not moving forward.

This past month or so we just waited, and tried to once again, to stay positive (are you sick of me saying that? Because I know I AM). We made a contingency plan that involved Chin sticking around Provo another year to work or get a masters or something that would fill the time. I had honestly tried to keep the lowest expectations possible, which resulted in me thinking that we weren't going to get in this year.

I knew Heavenly Father had a plan for us, and we felt His loving guidance continually throughout this whole process. We know that He helped us make a lot of tough, tough decisions.

So then what we thought was never going to happen, happened (and here's where the many exclamation points and capitalization comes in).

Today I was sitting at my desk at my internship, minding my own business, when Chin called me. I thought he was going to ask about my doctor's appointment I'd had earlier today, so I didn't think anything of it.

But as soon as I picked I knew something was different. I thought something was wrong! He was all short of breath and nervous sounding, and then he broke the news.

That we had been accepted into the University of Rochester Medical School Class of 2016.

WE ARE GOING TO MEDICAL SCHOOL!

The Dean of Admission's secretary had called Chin to tell him he'd been accepted!

As soon as Chin told me, I burst into tears/hysterical laughter, and I basically didn't stop for about two hours. When I called my mom to tell her, she couldn't even understand what I was saying.

It was like a HUGE boulder had been lifted off our shoulders, all the worry and stress and negative emotions we'd been feeling for the past few months literally were wiped away and I felt like I could breathe again.

Because here's the thing. I know Chin is a genius. And in my mind, he was a perfectly qualified candidate for med school. I trust his abilities, and I know how hard he works. But for other people to see that too (and by other people I mean MED SCHOOL), that's what was important throughout this process. That people trust his ability, and know what I kn0w -- that he'll make a DANG GOOD doctor.

So what happens now?

That's the big question.

The first thing I have to say is that I GET TO GO HOME TO NEW YORK. The place that I've missed for almost four years. I get to go back to it and spend at least four more years in a place that I absolutely love. Of course I'll miss Provo; I'll miss our amazing friends, and my sisters, and even the mountainous landscape that I complain about too much. I have nothing but good memories in Provo, and I know I'll miss it a lot. Also, there's still a possibility of us getting into the other two schools we're still wait listed at. But for right now, we're planning on Rochester.

The second thing we do is celebrate. And by celebrate I mean go to Europe for two weeks and have literally not one thing to stress about (except maybe which type of gelato to try every day). We're going to take this time to enjoy ourselves, and live it up, since we know the next four years are not going to be easy. We had been so stressed about not knowing, that we were really worried about it affecting our vacation. But now we can just relax on our trip of a lifetime!

Then, when we get back, we'll start making arrangements. We'll get Chin moved back to Rochester and get him all settled in (hellooooo road trip across the country, my worst nightmare). Then I'll come back to Provo to finish my last semester at BYU. I know that semester will be really tough, since of course being across the country from Chin is the last place I want to be. But honestly, I've been mentally preparing for so long, that I feel like I'm ready to get it over with. Plus, I'll get to visit him a LOT (I'm only taking 12 credits which gives me ample room to travel), and I'll get to spend a lot of quality time with my amazing friends and family before I have to finally say goodbye to my newest home and familiar place, Provo. It's a small sacrifice to pay for the next four years, and I know that Heavenly Father will be right by my side the whole time.

So in other words, we are literally jumping for joy and SO HAPPY.

And also, I just want to thank everyone who has helped us get through the hardest year of our lives. It was a struggle, and I know I complained a LOT. So thank you to those who listened to me rant, cry, and complain, and to those who offered us words of advice and encouragement. We are truly grateful to our friends and our family who have been with us every step of the way.

7 comments:

i seriously cried and giggled as i cried as i read this post. hayley this is SO SO SO happy! you and chin in rodchester couldn't be more perfect and fjdka fjioa jfeia cdkls afioe; ajfdj (that is my excitement :)

I'm so so SO happy for you guys!!! I know ALLLL too well those feelings of disappointment and sadness and anger for not getting in to medical/dental schools. My husband did so well on the DAT right after my son was born (98th percentile!) and he didn't get in. And all that ridiculous amount of money down and studying felt like it went down the drain. Then he applied again the next year (again spending SO much money) and we got in but it felt like barely. And it was the school that he wanted. I just wanted to cry. I do know the Lord truly knows our hearts and has a more perfect plan for us. There is a reason we had to stay (so I could meet you!!) and the Lord knew that. But in the midst of it it sucked so terribly bad!! I'm so so so happy that it is all working out perfectly for you guys though! That is so incredibly exciting!! CONGRATULATIONS!!

Hayley! I don't know if you remember me, we met at Robli and Devin's wedding-and were both getting married around the same time. Anyway, I just ran across your blog-LOVE this post. I am so excited for you two! Congratulations! We know exactly what you guys have been going through and i'm sure it is such a relief to have your plan set now and know where your future is headed! It is such an amazing experience, but its also REALLY hard!! Its awesome that you are going on vacation for a couple weeks to spend a lot of time together because time together during medical school is definitely hard to come by! Our first year was a lot less busy as his second year because of the boards. Studying hard for STEP 1 is WAY worse than MCAT preparation BUT after those boards are done its smooth sailing (at least that is what I have heard-Andrew takes it in 11 days!). I have become close friends with some of the other wives and it is so great to have the support of them, because they really understand what it is like to be a spouse of a medical student. There is also a group on Facebook called "lives of doctor wives" that you can join its so nice to chat with people going through the same thing. As hard as it is, it goes by kind of fast I can't believe we are starting 3rd year in July! Let me know if you have any questions or just want to chat sometime! Good luck!!